Saturday, August 8, 2009

Tonight while I was putting my 3yo girl to bed something hit me. I had finally gotten her to sleep and (believe me when I say that we have “Baby Wise-ed” and “Furberized” her to the max) was sneaking out of her bed ever so stealthily with the intent of leaving her sleep intact when it occurred to me how much time I spend sneaking out of the bed with her. Every nap and bed time I get her to sleep and then there I am trying to be a contortionist aiming to get out of her bed as I cringe and flinch at every creak and pop of the bed until finally I am out and off into whatever I feel I need to be doing. Off into the freedom that I want at the moment.

The thing about this is that one day the roles will be reversed and she will be sneaking away from me. We all did it. You know, sneaking out of the homes where our parents slept as we went gallivanting through the neighborhood with the boy of the hour. All too soon she is going to want me to leave her room so that she can get on with her own life. I am not suggesting that she is going to actually sneak out of our house (she would never want to nor would she ever get away with this. Right?) I am saying that just around the corner is the day when she does not want me to put her to bed at all anymore. And then what will I do with my time? I assure you that I will not be any more productive than I am now with the time I sometimes think I desperately need to get work done.

We cannot nor should we want to stop the natural progression of life but it is our responsibility to enjoy the moments we are given. I am actually quite grateful for this revelation of sorts because it has drawn my attention to the rush I am in to get her to bed and into the “land of nod” so that I can tackle whatever task is beckoning me away from what is truly important. Now. That is what I need to have my complete attention on and put my full energy toward. This very moment. What an angelic sight she is to see as she sleeps. With her eyes closed she looks like a cherub. I will enjoy these moments more now. Aren’t they all we really have in the end?